Author: Kevin Fall 
      Author: Joseph Pasquale
       Title: Exploiting In-Kernel Data Paths to Improve I/O Throughput and CPU Availability
       Pages: 327-333
   Publisher: USENIX
 Proceedings: USENIX Technical Conference Proceedings
        Date: Winter 1993
    Location: San Diego, CA
 Institution: University of California, San Diego


There's no on-line copy at the USENIX library yet.
Here's the abstract as I have typed it in:

We present teh motivation, design, implementation, and performance
evaluation of a UNIX kernel mechanism capable of establishing fast
in-kernel data pathways between I/O objects.  A new system call,
splice(), moves data asynchronously and without user-process
intervention to and from I/O objects specified by file descriptors.
Performance measurements indicate improved I/O throughput and increased
CPU availability attributable to data copying and context switch
overhead.

-- 
==John Kohl <jtk@rational.com>, Software Engineer
Rational Software, Configuration Management Business Unit
Coming soon: Rational User Conference 1999: Seattle WA, July 25--29
See details and register at <http:/www.rational.com/ruc>